Greater New Orleans

RICH HISTROY AND WARM HEARTS

Guest Blogger Marcia Wall writes about the African Methodist Episcopal church of New Orleans.

Religion is as much a part of New Orleans culture as good times and good food. Catholicism is one of the major faiths of the region, but other faiths including Judaism, Buddhism, and Protestant religions, are represented here as well. The St. Louis Cathedral is one of our famous religious landmarks, but other landmarks dot the city too.

St. Peter African Methodist Episcopal Church, which is part of the National Register of Historic Places, is one of those landmarks. A fixture in the community, it has existed in New Orleans for more than one hundred and forty years.

In 1850, a group of Christian freedmen of color, bonded men and women who believed that all men should be privileged to worship God according to the dictates of their spirit and conscience, began worshipping in a little house under some oak trees. It was located at Prytania and Walnut Streets, Jefferson City, Jefferson Parish — now New Orleans, Louisiana. Believing in the principles as laid down by Richard Allen, the man who founded the A.M.E. Church, this group worshipped and flourished in this temporary location.

In 1858 at a nearby location, the Methodist Episcopal Church of Jefferson City, a white congregation, permitted the African Methodists to worship in the basement of its church until the Civil War.

After the war, the African Methodist group was incorporated in Jefferson City and purchased its first church site on March 25, 1867 for $400 cash.

Ten years later, the group purchased a new church, the one it continues to worship in to this day. The Historic St. Peter African Methodist Church is the oldest surviving church in the community formally known as Jefferson City.

If you are one of those travelers who really wants to do what the locals do, then you might consider paying a visit to the historic church, regardless of your religion or ethnic background. Everyone is welcome at St. Peter A.M.E. Church. During services, if you are not touched by the Holy Ghost, you will certainly be touched by the warm spirits and open hearts of the congregation's members and of Rev. Stacy Richardson, the church pastor. (Click here to see videos of the church choir and of past sermons.)

Making that kind of heart-to-heart connection is what many travelers yearn for. People often say that they want to lose themselves while on vacation, but in reality, when we travel to new lands, we often seek to know more about ourselves by studying the lives of others, by studying how we fit in with the human family.

Services are held weekly at St. Peter A.M.E. Church on Sundays at 10:30 a. m. The church building is located at a few blocks off of St. Charles Ave. at 1201 Cadiz Street (corner Coliseum St.). It is easily accessible by the street car. For more info about the church or its services, call 504.891.3488 or send an email to hisstpeterchurch@bellsouth.net. You can also visit the church's website at www.hisstpeterchurch.org.

Certain portions of this article, especially the parts relating to the church's history, were excerpted from the church's website. 411 NOLA is grateful for the contribution.

Marcia Wall

Marcia Wall is a writer and photographer. Her writing tackles issues relating to humanity, spirituality and self-help. Marcia’s website 411nola (www.411Nola.com) is dedicated to travelers who love New Orleans. Malaria Shots Not Included, a guide to surviving life after college is available at Xlibris.com and Amazon.com. Marcia studied photography at the School of Creative and Performing Arts in San Diego, earned her B. A. at the University of California Santa Cruz and her Master of Arts degree at New Mexico State University. She is a member of the historic St. Augustine Catholic Church in the Treme neighborhood in New Orleans.